The decision by the UFC not to renew its broadcast deal with Rede
Globo after a partnership that spanned more than 10 years has made
a significant impact on the combat sports market in Brazil.
After the world’s largest MMA promotion decided to
invest in its own streaming platform (UFC Fight Pass) with TV
Bandeirantes as a partner, many fans of the sport thought that
Combate, the only cable channel dedicated 24 hours a day to martial
arts, would would be finished. After all, it would make no sense
for more than 300,000 subscribers to keep paying a monthly fee of
RS 49.90 ($9) without having access to the UFC as part of the
subscription.
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Instead, the approach of having “everything but UFC” at a more
affordable price for the subscriber was put into practice. After
signing deals with One Championship, Glory, Rizin, Jungle Fight,
Top Rank and Karate Combat, Combate is expected to announce the
addition of Bellator and PFL to its broadcast roster in the near
future. This is good news for MMA fans in general. It became clear
during UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro that the Globo group’s total
silence regarding the sport could impact its future. Unlike
previous numbered UFC editions in Rio de Janeiro, most of the
general public did not even know about the event since outlets
connected to Globo (including newspapers and TV stations) did not
mention UFC Rio — either before or after the event — even though
there were two Brazilians fighting for titles on the card.
With the Combate channel now having the rights to broadcast the
second largest promotion in the sport and PFL in addition to Rizin,
One, KSW and Jungle Fight — organizations that have several
Brazilians as champions — it’s likely that Rede Globo will resume
its coverage of MMA.
Another aggressive strategy utilized by Combate was to lower the
subscription fee to less than half of what was previously charged.
Today, the price is RS 19.90 (less than $4) for the annual
subscription. Meanwhile, the UFC platform in Brazil charges a
monthly fee of RS 29.90 (less than $6). In other words, for less
than $10, the Brazilian MMA fan now has access to nearly all of the
world’s major events in addition to a huge library of documentaries
and other content. It is worth remembering that during the last
seven years Combate charged around $15 for its monthly
subscription, which featured only the UFC, some national events and
documentaries. Now, hardcore fans will be able to have much more
MMA content while paying less.
UFC Top Team
During the first UFC Fight Pass broadcast in Brazil, the promotion
pleased fans by assembling a team from Combate: Andre Azevedo
(narrator), Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (commentator), Carlão Barreto
(commentator) and Evelyn Rodrigues (reporter). The only new
addition for UFC Fight Pass was Demian Maia as a commentator. The
black belt, who graduated with a degree in journalism, did very
well alongside “Minotauro” and Carlson Gracie’s veteran black belt,
Barreto. According to sources close to UFC Brazil,
the platform attracted 60,000 new subscribers in the
first two weeks of the year, and that figure is likely to have
grown significantly during the week of UFC 283.
Meanwhile, Combate broadcast team continues with Rhoodes Lima as
the titular narrator, with Luiz Prota and Bernardo Edler in the
same role. The team of commentators includes Fabricio
Werdum, Luciano Andrade, Ana Hissa, Marcelo Alonso, Alex Gazé
and Múzio de Angelis.
Only time will tell how the broadcast changes will affect Brazilian
MMA, but it seems that it has already begun a democratization of
the sport. Considering the size of the Globo conglomerate in the
country, it would not be surprising if, in a few years, Brazil is
the only country in the world where the champions of Bellator, PFL,
One and Rizin are much more recognized by the general public than
the UFC champions.